The Purdue women finished eighth at the recent NCAA Outdoor Championships and also won the 2017 Big Ten outdoor title. Much of that success came via sprinters and hurdlers such as Devynne Charlton and Carmiesha Cox. A men's sprinter, Waseem Williams, won two Big Ten titles this past spring and advanced to the NCAA Championships with the Boilermakers' 400 relay.

Elliott previously served as head track and field and cross country coach at Campbell University in 2011-12. He was head coach of the Bahamas team at the 2001 World Championships and coached sprinter Debbie Ferguson at the 2000 Olympics.